Peru's Marco Amato (4) with the catch-and-run for the Nighthawks ' long-distance score. PLATTSBURGH — Week 3 of the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference season brought one of the year's most anticipated matchups as the undefeated Peru Nighthawks traveled to Plattsburgh High School to take on the unbeaten Plattsburgh Hornets, with sole possession of first place in the conference on the line. Peru struck first and never looked back. The Nighthawks opened the scoring at the 10:55 mark of the first quarter when Brody Blaise Smith broke through the Hornets' defense and raced 54 yards for a touchdown, giving Peru an early 6-0 advantage. The score remained unchanged for the rest of the opening quarter as both defenses settled in. Plattsburgh answered immediately to start the second quarter. Just 33 seconds into the period, Cooper Holland connected on a 31-yard touchdown pass to cap a quick drive and give the Hornets their first lead of the night at 7-6. The lead was short-lived. Peru responded with an explosive play of its own as Marco Amato hauled in a 58-yard touchdown pass to put the Nighthawks back in front, 12-7. The visitors continued to build momentum late in the half when Smith punched in a 1-yard touchdown run with 4:31 remaining before halftime. Peru converted the extra point and carried a commanding 19-7 lead into the locker room. The Nighthawks dominated the second half. With 4:39 remaining in the third quarter, Smith delivered the game's knockout blow, bursting through the line and sprinting 52 yards for his third touchdown of the evening to extend the advantage to 26-7. Peru wasn't finished. With just 1:22 left in the third quarter, Deacon Giroux found space behind the Plattsburgh secondary and hauled in a 26-yard touchdown pass to push the lead to 33-7 heading into the final quarter. Only four seconds into the fourth quarter, Deon Lawyer added to the Peru lead with a 2-yard touchdown run, making it 39-7 and seemingly putting the game out of reach. To their credit, the Hornets kept fighting. Garrison Rodriguez found the end zone on a 15-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 39-15. Later, with less than four minutes remaining, Ryan Colburn electrified the home crowd with a 50-yard touchdown run, trimming the lead to 39-23 and making it a two-possession game. However, any hopes of a late comeback were erased in the closing minutes. With 1:27 remaining, Isaiah Hendrix connected on a 27-yard touchdown pass to seal the victory and cap off a dominant offensive performance for Peru. The touchdown provided the final margin as the Nighthawks rolled to a 45-23 victory over their longtime rivals. Smith led the way for Peru with three rushing touchdowns, while Amato, Giroux, Lawyer, and Hendrix all contributed scores in a balanced offensive attack. Plattsburgh scored touchdowns from Holland, Rodriguez, and Colburn but couldn't overcome Peru's explosive plays throughout the night. With the win, the Nighthawks improve to 3-0 and will return home next week to host Saranac Lake. The Hornets fall to 2-1 and will look to bounce back when they travel to Beekmantown to face the Eagles.

Plattsburgh's Cooper Holland (3) breaks the tackle of Peru's Isaac Roger (15) for the Hornets first down.

Plattsburgh's Ryan Colburn (13) takes it around the corner on the 92-yard punt return for the touchdown. Plattsburgh, NY-It was the opening weekend of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association football season, and the Plattsburgh Hornets made a statement in their season opener, rolling to a convincing 45-0 victory over the Malone Huskies in non-sectional action. The Hornets wasted little time getting on the scoreboard. At the 10:35 mark of the first quarter, Ryan Colburn electrified the crowd by returning a punt 92 yards for a touchdown, giving Plattsburgh an early 6-0 lead. Plattsburgh continued to control the game as Colden Johnson scored on a 2-yard touchdown run later in the opening quarter. The successful conversion pushed the lead to 14-0. Johnson struck again in the second quarter, finding the end zone from short yardage at the 6:53 mark to extend the Hornets' advantage to 22-0. That score would stand as the final points of the first half as Plattsburgh took a commanding lead into the break. The Hornets picked up right where they left off in the third quarter. Cooper Holland connected on a 13-yard touchdown pass with 3:08 remaining in the quarter to increase the lead to 29-0. On Malone's next possession, Plattsburgh's defense got in on the scoring by tackling the Huskies quarterback in the end zone for a safety, making it 31-0. Later in the third quarter, Johnson recorded his third rushing touchdown of the day, breaking free for a 14-yard score at the 6:05 mark to push the lead to 38-0. Plattsburgh capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter when Garrison Rodriguez powered in from 8 yards out with 4:13 remaining, sealing the 45-0 victory. Johnson led the Hornets offensively with 63 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Plattsburgh improves to 1-0 and will now prepare for sectional play against the Moriah Vikings. For Malone, Mason Perrea was a bright spot, carrying the ball five times for 35 yards. The Huskies fall to 0-1 and will look to rebound when they open sectional play against the Ogdensburg Blue Devils.

Malone's Jake Riley (20) takes it around the edge with the stiff arm on the defender for the nice gain.

Plattsburgh's (0) with the catch and fighting for the extra yards along the sidelines as they get the first down. It would be the last game of the regular season in the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference as the Plattsburgh Hornets would host the Ticonderoga Sentinels in their return to 11-man football. It would only take the home Hornets 1:44 to get the opening score of the game, when George Dejesus broke it for 16 yards, giving them the 6-0 lead. Then at the 8:36 mark of the first quarter, the Hornets would extend their lead to 14-0 on Ryan Colburn's one-handed grab for the score, and that's how the first quarter would end. In the second quarter, the Hornets would stay on the pedal, and at the 2:46 mark of the quarter, they would extend their lead to 21-0 on the 38-yard strike to Will Boire. Then at the 7:49 Hotnets Ryan Colburne would get his second score of the half this time with a 225-yard run and make it 28-0 game, and that's where the first half would end. When the teams returned for the second half, the Sentinels came out and had the defense at the top of its game, holding the Hornets scoreless, and the game was still 28-0 after the third quarter. Although in the fourth quarter the Hornets' offense would explode for three touchdowns —two from Jahvari Anderson and one from Tyler Durney —as the Hornets secured the 49-0 victory. In the winning effort, the Hornets go into the playoffs on a two-game winning streak at 2-6 and will play the Saranac Spartans in the Section VII Class C Semifinals. The Ticonderoga Sentinels finish the regular season at 0-7 and will play the Moriah Vikings in the Section VII Class D Finals. Gallery

Ticonderoga's Trevor Blanchard (32) with the stiff arm on the Plattsburgh defender as he takes it around the corner for the first down. Gallery

Beekmantown's Garrett Pelkey (81) with the comeback catch along the sidelines for the first down as they fight for the score. It would be the last week of the regular season in the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference, and we would have the Beekmantown Eagles hosting the Saranac Lake Red Storm as they look to position themself for the upcoming playoffs. The home Eagles would strike first in the 1st quarter on a 38-yard pass and catch to Blake Rock for the 6-0 lead with 31 seconds left in the 1st quarter. Then, at the 4:23 mark of the season quarter, the Eagles would extend their lead to 12-0. The Red Storm would get on the board at the 10:23 mark of the 2nd quarter with a 5-yard run by David Montroy, making it 12-7. The Eagles would regain their two-score lead on the ensuing kickoff when Shamus Bilbeau would return it 74 yards for the score and take the 18-7 lead, and that's where the scoring would end for the 1st half. The Eagles would stay hot as they returned for the third quarter when Garrett Pelkey would score on 16 16-yard score and take the big 24-7 lead early in the third quarter. The Red Storm would bite back in the deficit on a 66-yard run by David Montroy to make it 24-14. The Red Storm would answer back in a big way on a 74-yard pass and catch to Scott Holcomb as they made it a three-point game at 24-21 at the 10:07 mark of the quarter. The game would stay there till the 4:16 mark of the 4th quarter when David Montroy would score his third touchdown of the night to give the Red Storm the 28-24 lead. From there, the Red Storm defense would be up to the call and hold on for the win at 28-24. In the winning effort, the Red Stom go to 5-3 on the season, as the Eagles fall to 4-, four both waiting for their opponents next weekend as the sectional playoffs begin. Gallery

Saranac Lake's Scott Holcomb (10) with the catch along the sidelines as he battles the defender for the first down. Gallery

Plattsburgh's Ryan Colburn (13) with the catch and fighting through the tackle of Beekmantown's Bryson Recore (10) as he gets the first down. It would be week #6 of the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference football season, marking the battle of crosstown rivals. The Beekmantown Eagles would travel to Plattsburgh to take on the winless Hornets, as they both look prepared for the playoffs. The Hornets would get the lone score of the opening quarter on an 11-yard run by Colden Johnson to take the 7-0 lead. In the second quarter, the offense started to come alive as Beekman took the 8-7 lead on a 10-yard pass to Garrett Pelkey. The Hornets would answer right back with their own passing touchdown this time to Ryan Colburn to make it a 13-8 Hornets lead as they enter the halftime break. When the teams returned for the 2nd half, the Eagles would regain the lead right off on a 22-yard pass to Hunter Porter, and the Eagles took the 16-13 lead. The Hornets would take the lead right back a minute later on a 58-yard pass from Jahvari Anderson to regain the lead at 20-16. The Eagles would answer back with just under five minutes left in the third quarter on the 110-yard pass to Bryson Recore,24-20. The Hornets would come back again on a crazy play, whether the running back stepped out or not, before he passed it downfield to Jo Jo Wineglass, taking the 27-24 lead as they entered the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Hornets would keep coming and extend their lead to 33-24 on the 4-yard run by Degio Rios. Then, as they reached the midway mark of the quarter, the Hornets put the game away with a yard pass to Ryan Colburn for his second score of the game. The Eagles fought to the end, scoring again with 5 seconds left in the game on a 17-yard strike to Shamus Bilbeau, as the game finished 39-3 in favor of the Hornets. In the winning effort, the Hornets secured their first win of the season, improving to 1-6 as they enter the last week against Ticonderoga. As for the Beekmantown Eagles, they would fall to 4-2 on the season as they enter the last game against Saranac Lake. Gallery

Beekmantown's Shamus Bilbeau (1) with the stiff arm on the Plattsburgh defender as he takes it around the corner for the first down. Gallery

Peru's Jake Frechette (7) splits through the defense and gains the first down. It would be the lone section vii football gamer of the weekend as the #2 Peru Nighhawks would host the #3Plattsburgh Hornets in Class B semi-finals as the winner would get the #1 Beekmantown Eagles the next weekend at Plattsburgh High School with a title on the line. The Nighthawks would get the game's opening points halfway through the first quarter in an unusual way with a safety and take the 2-0 lead. The Nighthawks would then add a touchdown two minutes later from Elijah Hendricks on the 12-yard pass and take the 9-0 lead. The game would stay there till the six-minute mark of the second when Wyatt Bridges would score from 2 yards out to take a 16-0 lead. Then, with three minutes left in the half, the Hornets would get on the board with a two-yard run from Dan Hartman to make it a 16-6 game, and that's where we would enter the half. When we returned for the third quarter, the Nighthawks would stay on the pedal when Wyatt Bridges would get the 16-yard score 4 minutes in and extend their lead to 23-6. The Hornets would answer back with three minutes left in the third quarter when Jahvari Anderson would score on the 26-yard pass reception to make it a 23-12 game. The Nighthawks would answer back 30 seconds into the 4th quarter when Wyatt Bridges would score from 19 yards out and make it a 30-12 game. Then, to finish off the game, Wyatt Bridges would score again 4th on the night, this time from 29 yards out, to secure the 37-12 victory. In the winning effort, the Nighthawks would go to 6-2 in the season as they will take on the Beekmantown Eagles in the Section VII Class B Finals on November 8th. Gallery

Plattsburgh's Dan Hartman (11) with the side step the Nighthawk defender and gains the extra yards. Gallery